Bengals coach Marvin Lewis and Saints coach Sean Payton are dealing with similar challenges as they cross paths in a game with a lot more at stake than one might expect, given the way both teams have played lately.

The Saints (4-5) haven't had a winning record all season, yet have been fortunate that the rest of the NFC South has been doing even worse. The Bengals (5-3-1), meanwhile, have stumbled after a 3-0 start, going 2-3-1 since.

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"There are times when teams need wins. Well, we both need them," said Saints right tackle Zach Strief, who grew up a Bengals fan in the Cincinnati area. "It's going to be a highly intense game. ... That's just the nature of this part of the year and playing a good football team that needs a win."

Unlike the Saints, Cincinnati plays in a division - the AFC North - which has only winning teams. All four of them are within a game of each other in the standings.

The Bengals were in first place until last week, when they were beaten badly at home, 24-3, by the Cleveland Browns (6-3), who took over the lead of the division.

"Our expectations of things are a lot higher," Lewis said. "We have to rise above it."

The Bengals had not lost at home all season before the Cleveland defeat. The Saints know the feeling. They hadn't lost in the Superdome in more than a season until last weekend, when San Francisco ended their 11-game home winning streak, 27-24 in overtime.

The loss was the latest in four setbacks this season by three or fewer points, with two coming in overtime.

"Do you get frustrated? Are some of those losses tough? Absolutely they are," Payton said. "Yet you cannot allow it to get you down. It has to be 24 hours, maybe a little longer. Then you are (moving) on, the preparation is on. Our focus now is on Cincinnati and we are playing for a lot. This is an important game for us."

Here are some things to know about the Bengals' visit to the Bayou:DOWN, NOT OUT: Saints outside linebacker Junior Galette said the Saints' string of close losses have been both maddening and encouraging.

"It gets harder, the more games you lose like that, the last play of the game, but we've got to look at it positive and say: 'This is a good thing,'" said Galette, who leads the Saints with six sacks. "We know that we could easily be 8-1. I think that's a good thing in the long run because we made so many mistakes to lose in the last second that there's no way we're going to same thing over again."

DALTON'S DAY: Nobody will be under closer scrutiny than quarterback Andy Dalton, who last week completed only 10 passes for 86 yards and had three interceptions, finishing with a passer rating of 2.0. The Bengals will be looking to see if Dalton can shake it off.

"There's so many things that we could have done differently and I could have done differently," Dalton said. "It was one game so we can't let it hurt us for the remainder of the season."

INGRAM'S LOAD: With Saints running backs Pierre Thomas and Khiry Robinson injured lately, running back Mark Ingram has carried the kind of workload he hasn't enjoyed since being a Heisman Trophy-winner at Alabama. In the past three games, he's carried 81 times for 392 yards and three TDs. In the process, he became the first Saints running back since Deuce McAllister in 2003 to have three straight 100-yard rushing games.

"A couple of guys went down. I just had to step up and do my job and try to take advantage of the opportunity that presented itself," Ingram said, adding that additional work has helped him "get into a rhythm."

RUN-OVER DEFENSE: Dalton's struggles overshadowed another abysmal showing by the Bengals' defense, which allowed the Browns to rush for 170 yards, the third time an opponent has picked up at least that many. Cincinnati ranks 31st against the run and has allowed each of the last seven opponents to run for at least 100 yards. The Bengals have been without starting linebackers Vontaze Burfict and Rey Maualuga the last two weeks.

"We've all got to do better, coaches and players alike," coordinator Paul Guenther said. "We've got to play better up front. We've got to play better at the linebacker position, regardless who's in there. So it's a work in progress right now."

SHIFTING BREES: For the most part, Saints quarterback Drew Brees is maintaining elite statistics, be it his third-ranked yards per game (312.9) or his third ranked completion percentage (68.4). Yet he has also struggled with turnovers, including a late interception in Detroit and late fumble against the Niners that both set up the opponents' winning scores.

"Some things are just you catch a bad break or whatever it might be, and yet the ball is in my hands," Brees said. "I'm responsible. So I have no problem taking the fall, taking responsibility or accountability."